First period: Nearly 20 years after becoming part of S.J., city is ready to be in the diploma business

Sunday

Jul 20, 2008 at 12:01 AM

LATHROP - In the Lathrop High School crest, a proud Spartan stands near the Mossdale bridge with the San Joaquin River flowing below. Symbols of the city's rich agriculture and railroad history surround a stack of books.

Tara Cuslidge

LATHROP - In the Lathrop High School crest, a proud Spartan stands near the Mossdale bridge with the San Joaquin River flowing below. Symbols of the city's rich agriculture and railroad history surround a stack of books.

Principal David Chamberlain hopes the logo bodes well for a unifying future.

"I hope it means this is a place to come together and unite," said Chamberlain of the high school slated to open next month.

San Joaquin County's newest city incorporated almost 20 years ago, but it is only now getting its long-awaited first high school.

When it opens Aug. 11, school officials and local leaders expect the campus to be a great source of pride for the city of nearly 17,500.

The students, teachers and staff will be pioneers, Chamberlain said, given a unique opportunity to work together to build a school and community of Spartan spirit from the ground up.

"It's wonderful for the Lathrop community," said Sandy Dwyer, director of facilities planning for Manteca Unified. "It's a huge thing for the students to say: 'I live in Lathrop, and I go to Lathrop High.' "

Mayor Kristy Sayles agrees.

"We're so excited," Sayles said. "We will have our own high school. We will have our own football team. We will have our own basketball team. We will have the opportunity to go out and cheer our children on here."

Sayles was raised in Lathrop but attended Manteca High School. She remembers the bus rides to the neighboring city. She's glad that is over for future generations of Lathrop students, including her daughter, who will attend the high school in three years.

"It's Lathrop's time," she said.

The staff is ready for the challenges ahead.

"We'll get to establish what we want and build it up," said Dianna Puett, chair of the visual and performing arts department at Lathrop High.

She's no stranger to visionary thinking. She was one of the teachers who came from East Union to Sierra when the new Manteca campus opened in 1994.

"I remember it being a lot of work," she said. "But it was really rewarding. There will be a lot of things to do and glitches to work out, but we'll do it."

Earlier this month, photos snapped by Chamberlain were posted at the front counter. Desks were organized. Office manager Taci Carden - whose desk is temporarily located front and center upon entering the administration building - sat ready to greet visitors with a big smile.

"It is absolutely wonderful," Carden said on move-in day in June, when the office was bare. "I can't even begin to explain how I feel."

Chamberlain said moving in, after being hired to lead the school in June 2007, brought out a lot of emotions, particularly pride.

"It's been a long haul, but it's worth it," Chamberlain said.

The opening of Lathrop High will alleviate overcrowding at Sierra High, where a majority of Lathrop's high school students are bused, said Bob Lee, director of secondary education for Manteca Unified.

Fewer underclassmen and teachers - a majority of the teachers at the new high school opted to come over from Sierra - will be on the Manteca campus, he said.

To prepare for the opening, Chamberlain has spent countless hours at Lathrop High's feeder schools, getting input from students and parents about various aspects of the school, including its colors and mascot.

The community is responding positively to the upcoming opening.

Local businesses have aided in hosting fundraisers for the campus. Last fall, the school hosted a night at Dell'Osso Family Farm. The cheerleading squad recently held a car wash at another local business. Proceeds went to its first cheer camp.

Chamberlain's hope is that the pride in the school and community involvement continue to grow in the coming months, through the school's opening and into the future.

"We're looking forward to our theater and other portions of our campus being open to the community to further unite the community," Chamberlain said. "As I see it, all the members of the community are now Spartans."